Method of furniture construction

ABSTRACT

A chair or similar article of furniture employing molded shells which mate to complete an integral shell. Two shells are employed: a perimeter shell having an aperture therein and a center shell that mates with the perimeter shell so as to close off the aperture in the perimeter shell. The two shells are advantageously molded first as one piece which is then cut into the two shells. Each shell is separately upholstered with upholstery connections being located along an edge portion of the shell. The two shells are thereafter joined together along the edge portions; upholstery connections along the edge portions are concealed between the joined-together portions. The mating shells may incorporate flanges along the edges thereof which abut in joining the shells together. In such a case, and when one flange presents an outwardly exposed surface, a doubled-over piece of upholstery may be employed to cover the exposed surface. The doubling over of the upholstery conceals the upholstery connections into the exposed surface as well as the fastening elements used to join the two shells together. A free edge of the doubled-over upholstery is then tucked between the abutting flanges to complete the upholstery. Alternatively, an extrusion may be employed as a spacer between the abutting flanges of the two shells, with a portion thereof extending over the outwardly exposed flange surface. The extrusion may have upholstery adhered thereto, and thus conceals the upholstery connections and the fastening elements used to join one shell to the other. The upholstery for the perimeter shell is a machine-sewed fabric envelope, eliminating all handstitching except for the sewing of a small flap under the front of the shell.

Attorneys-Robert S. Dunham, P. E. Henninger, Lester W.

Clark, John A. Harvey, Gerald W. Griffin, Thomas F.

Moran, Howard .1. Churchill and Robert Scobey ABSTRACT: A chair orsimilar article of furniture employing molded shells which mate tocomplete an integral shell. Two shells are employed: a perimeter shellhaving an aperture therein and a center shell that mates with theperimeter shell so as to close off the aperture in the perimeter shell.The two shells are advantageously molded first as one piece which isthen cut into the two shells. Each shell is separately upholstered withupholstery connections being located along an edge portion of the shell.The two shells are thereafter joined together along the edge portions;upholstery connections along the edge portions are concealed between thejoinedtogether portions.

The mating shells may incorporate flanges along the edges thereof whichabut in joining the shells together. In such a case, and when one flangepresents an outwardly exposed surface, a doubled-over piece ofupholstery may be employed to cover the exposed surface. The doublingover of the upholstery conceals the upholstery connections into theexposed surface as well as the fastening elements used to join the twoshells together. A free edge of the doubled-over upholstery is thentucked between the abutting flanges to complete the United States Patent[72] lnventor Maxwell E. Pearson EastGreenville, Pa. [21] Appl. No.840,581 [22] Filed June 3,1969

Division of Ser. No. 681,803, Nov. 9, 1967, Pat. No. 3,521,929. [45]Patented Apr. 27, 1971 [73] Assignee Knoll Associates, Inc.

New York, N.Y.

[54] METHOD OF FURNITURE CONSTRUCTION 6 Claims, 16 Drawing Figs. [52]29/91.], 29/91 [51] Int. 868g 7/00 [50] Field of 29/91, 91.1, 91.7;29/407; 297/452, 454, 455, 456, 457, 458, 459

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS aae a. de 0 m m mm em WZMM 6mt. [Hu Gm .lp .6 6 he mo m cc 6 hm o w m ma m h y Wwoh a "m -lun mm cflwm wl leee n m wh mmi is Poor me m m ow m uflum fl HM h n ee am .4mmPm a mmmm wnmmm bd i .wanm armw memfl cmfia m uwkm w mnfmwmwed a 2 aoecupm A86 n 1 .0 3 .wfl o d w W mm a 5% mm m u am mm c O m 3 en 3 .m md b Suwws mm .m m "mum 1/ 85 7 4 L 5 H h. 1.. 95 5 N .n WWW 4W4 w 2w w F- n.r 222 W .6. e M I 3 mma m H m Hm T. mam m .m .m we nan PW maa n m a.mmmmmmn em nemwvpmh F0 OaeOuwU u J 8245779 wwwwwww mm UWWW U mm 2887169007479 I m MM 459282 1 2538907 u Pmminmzmn 3,576,059

' sum 1 OF 5 INVENTOR.

M x A 4 W/ELL [T Pea/Q50 PATENTED APRZY I971 SHEET 2 OF 5 SHEET 3 BF 5PATENTEU APR27 1971 PATENTED m2? 197i SHEET M []F 5 PATENTEB AFR27 I97!SHEET 5 0F 5 METHOD OF FURNITURE CONSTRUCTION CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATEDAPPLICATION This application is a division of my copending applicationSer. No. 681,803, filed Nov. 9, I967, for FURNITURE CON- STRUCTION, nowUS. Pat. No. 3,521,929, issued July 28, I970.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to articles offurniture and, in particular, to the making of an upholstered article offurniture.

The present invention is directed particularly to the making of anupholstered article of furniture, such as a chair, in which all of theupholstered connections are concealed. The invention involves theutilization of shells which together form the article of furniture. Forexample, in the making of a chair, two mating shells are employed,namely, a perimeter shell having an aperture therein and a center shellwhich closes off the aperture in the completed chair. The perimeter andcenter shells may be molded separately, or a single integral shell maybe molded and then cut or severed into the distinct perimeter and centershells. The molding of a single integral shell which is then cut orsevered into the perimeter and center shells is preferred, since onlyone molding tool is needed in the molding process. The separate shellsare then separately upholstered, and upholstery connections are employedalong edge portions thereof. In this fashion, when the separatelyupholstered shells are joined together to complete the article offurniture, the connections along the edges thereof are concealed betweenthe joined edges.

The shells may include flanges along the edges thereof which abut injoining the shells together. One of the flanges will be exteriorlyexposed. In such a case, the exposed surface of the flange may becovered by a doubled-over piece of upholstery, the doubling over ofwhich conceals the upholstery connections into the exposed surface aswell as the fastening elements used to join the two shells together. Thefree edge of the upholstery may then be tucked between the flanges tocomplete the upholstering of the article. By this technique, allupholstery and shell fastening connections may be concealed from view.Typically, upholstery connections on the bottom of a chair, for example,are visible. In the present invention, all connections may be concealed,providing a much better overall appearance for the entire article.

Alternatively, an extrusion may be employed extending between theabutting flanges of the shells and serving as a spacer for the flanges.The extrusion may include a wedgeshaped edge portion which makes contactwith both shell flanges for the entire length of the abutting flangedsurfaces. The wedge-shaped configuration prevents the extrusion frombeing pulled out after a tightening of the fastening elements joiningthe two flanges together. The extrusion includes a flexible portionthereof extending over the exteriorly exposed surface of one of theflanges, so as to cover all fastening elements employed to maintain thetwo shells together, as well as upholstery connections into the surface.The extrusion may advantageously have an upholstery material adheredthereto so as to render it unnoticeable.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS In the accompanying drawings:

FIG. I is a perspective view of a chair embodying the invention.

FIG. 1A is a bottom view ofa part of the chair of FIG. 1, to an enlargedscale.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of an integral chair shell forming a partof the chair ofFIG. I.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of two shells forming the integral shell ofFIG. 2.

FIGS. 4 and 5 are sectional views of the chair shell respectively shownin FIGS. 2 and 4, taken respectively along the section lines 4-4 and 5-5of these FIGS.

FIGS. 6 and 7 are sectional views of the chair shells shown in FIG. 3,with upholstery attached thereto.

FIGS. 8 and 9 are sectional views of the parts of the chair shown inFIGS. 6 and 7, taken respectively along section lines 8-8 and 9-9 ofthose FIGS. and showing the details of upholstery connections.

FIG. 10 is a sectional view of the completed chair.

FIG. 11 is a sectional view of the chair shown in FIG. 10, taken alongthe section line 11-11 in FIG. 10.

FIG. 12 is a view, to an enlarged scale, of a connection betweenabutting shells in the completed chair of FIG. 10.

FIG. 13 is an enlarged view of a part of the completed chair shown inFIG. 11, looking in the direction of the arrows 13-13 in FIG. 11 andshowing the details of a further upholstery technique in accordance withthe invention.

FIGS. 14 and 15 are sectional views similar to FIG. 12, to an enlargedscale, showing an alternative form of construction employing a vinylextrusion separating the abutting shells.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION Referring to FIG. I, an article of furniture,namely, a chair 20, is shown embodying the invention. The chair includesa seat support 22, a back support 24, and arm rests 26a and 26b. Thechair is supported by a vertical spindle 28 terminated at its lower endby a base 30. The chair 20 is covered by upholstery 42 and 52.

FIG. 2 illustrates an integral chair shell 34 employed in making thechair of FIG. 1. The chair shell 34 may be made of any suitablematerial; e.g., the shell may be molded from sisalreinforced plastic.The integral shell 34 includes two distinct parts: a perimeter shell 34aand a center shell 34b (see also FIG. 3). The integral chair shell 34shown in FIG. 2 may be molded to the shape shown in FIG. 2 andsubsequently cut or severed along line 36 to produce the perimeter andcenter shells 34a and 34b, or the perimeter and center shells may beseparately formed. Either technique of producing the distinct shells maybe employed, although the technique of forming a single complete shelland then cutting it into two distinct shells is the most advantageoustechnique from the standpoint of reducing production costs. Inparticular, when the chair is molded in one piece and then cut apartinto two separate shells, only one molding tool is required. Separatemolding tools would be needed in the event that the shells wereseparately molded, thereby increasing the cost of the operationsubstantially by requiring an additional molding tool.

The perimeter shell 34a includes an inner peripheral edge 340' thatdefines aperture 35 in the perimeter shell and an outer peripheral edge34a". The center shell 34b includes an outer peripheral edge 3412'. Whenthe perimeter and center shells are cut from a single shell molded tothe shape shown in FIG. 2, the single shell should include a portion 38thereof (see FIG. 4) that forms an angle with the adjacent parts of theshell. The single shell is then severed by cutting throughout the angledpart 38 (cut 36) to produce the two separate shells 34a and 34b shown inFIG. 3. The angled portion of the single shell thus creates flanges 38aand 38b (FIG. 10) along the edges of the respective shells. Inparticular, the flange 38a is formed along the inner peripheral edge ofthe perimeter shell 34a, and the flange 38b is formed along the outerperipheral edge of the'center shell 34b. The flanges 38a and 38b abut,as shown in FIG. 11. By providing the angled part 38 in a single shellwhich is thereafter severed to produce the perimeter and center shells,provision is made so that the perimeter and center shells may thereafterbe joined together along the edge flanges 38a and 38b. Without such anangled part of the shell, about which the cut is made, the perimeter andcenter shells would have no overlapping portions about which they couldbe rejoined. On the other hand, if separate perimeter and center shellsare independently molded, then angled flanges need not be employed,since the parts may be molded to insure that the edge portions thereofoverlap to provide for the joining together of the shells to completethe article of furniture.

In any event, the perimeter and center shells are separatelyupholstered, as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7. Typically, a padding material 40is positioned over the upper surface of center shell 34!), and anupholstery material 42 (pieces 42a and 42b) covers both the shell 34band the padding 40. A stiffener element 44 may be employed inside theupholstery 42 in the region in which the back support 24 joins the seatsupport 22. The stiffening element 44 may be retained in place by astrip of fabric 46 which is stitched to the upholstery piece 42b.

The upholstery 42 may be secured to the center shell 34b along the outeredge portion of flange 38b by staples 48, as shown in FIG. 8. Typically,the edges of the upholstery pieces 42a and 42b overlap along theunderside of flange 38b. Staples 48 are driven through the upholsterypieces and into the flange 38b to maintain the upholstery in place.

Similarly, as shown in FIG. 7, the perimeter shell 34a is upholstered bythe use of a padding material 50 and an upholstery material 52. Theupholstery material 52 may be secured to the shell 34a along the flange38a by staples 54 shown in FIG. 9. In particular, one edge 52a of theupholstery material may be secured to an upper surface of the flange380, while another edge 52b may be secured by the staples to an undersurface of the flange. Alternatively, either of the upholstery edges 52aand 5212 could pass around the inner edge 34a of the perimeter shell andunderlap or overlap the other upholstery edge.

The upholstery for the perimeter shell 34a is typically a machine-sewedfabric envelope which is easily slipped over the shell and paddingmaterial 50. The machine-sewing eliminates all handstitching except fora small flap under the front of the seat section 22. In particular,referring to FIGS. 1 and IA, stitching 80 may be employed to create theenvelope 52 of upholstery material used to cover the perimeter shell. Asmall flap 52c of material is left unsewed under the bottom of thechair, which may be stitched by hand as at 80a and 80b to complete theenvelope. The ability to provide for machinesewing of almost all of theupholstery material for the perimeter shell 34a permits appreciablesavings in labor needed to complete the assembly of the chair.

The separately upholstered perimeter and center shells are joinedtogether as shown in FIGS. and II. Particularly, the flanges 38a and 38babut with upholstery material therebetween, as shown in the FIGS. Theshells may be secured together by any number of connections along theflanges, one of which is shown in FIG. 12. Each connection may employ ascrew'60, the head of which is seated against a washer 62 positionedagainst the flange 38a of the perimeter shell. The screw passes throughthe flange 38a and through the flange 38b of the center shell, and issecured in place by a threaded fastening element 64 in the flange 38b.

The screws 60 used to join together the perimeter and center shells 34aand 341) may be covered by upholstery material, as shown in FIGS. 12 and13. A strip of upholstery material 70 may be employed for this purpose,one edge of which is positioned over the screws 60 and held in. place bya cardboard or similar strip 72 of reinforcing material which is held inplace by staples 74 that pass through the cardboard strip and upholsterystrip 70 into the flange 38a. The upholstery strip 70 is then doubledover to conceal the staples 74 and cardboard strip 72, and free end 70aof the strip may be tucked into the joint between the flanges 38a and38b, as shown in FIG. 12, to be sandwiched between the fabric pieces 42aand 52a. The tucking of the edge 70a may be completed by use of ascrewdriver or any other suitable instrument, and is done after theupholstered perimeter and center shells have been completely fastenedtogether by the screws 60.

FIGS. 14 and show an alternative arrangement for completing thefastening together of the perimeter shell 34a and center shell 34b.Specifically, a vinyl or other flexible extrusion 82 is employed havinga wedge-shaped edge portion 820. The extrusion extends about the entireperiphery of the shells between the abutting flanges 38a and 38b. Theextrusion acts as a spacing element between the flanges; it is employedto fill the space between the flanges produced by the upholstery betweenthe flanges. The wedge-shaped edge 82a prevents the extrusion from beingpulled out when screws 60 fastening together the shells are tightened.In this regard, the extrusion 82 includes a series of openings therein,through which the screws 60 pass. The extrusion includes an edge portion82b which extends over the outer surface of the flange 38a of theperimeter shell 34a. The edge portion 82b thus covers all the screws 60as well as the upholstery connections into the flange 38a. There issufficient flexibility in the extrusion edge portion 82b to permit it tobe pulled back in order to gain access to the screws 60. Advantageously,an upholstery fabric 84 is glued to the outer surface of the extrusion82 so as to cover the extrusion. Such an upholstery piece eliminates theneed for tacking a strip of upholstery, such as strip 70 in FIG. 12, tothe perimeter shell and tucking the loose flap between the flanges ofthe two shells, as explained above in connection with FIG. 12.

Additionally, FIGS. 14 and 15 show paddings 86 and 88 of foam or othermaterial between the shells and the upholstery material on the outersurfaces of the shells. For example, the foam material 88 is positionedbetween the upholstery 42b and the center shell 34b. Such foam orpadding material provides a soft resilient touch to the outer surface ofthe chair; in the other FIGS. of the application, the upholsterymaterial is shown directly against the outer surfaces of shells 34a and34b.

It will be noted that the present invention involves an article offurniture in which connections of upholstery material to thecorresponding shells are concealed by locating the connections betweenabutting edge portions of the shells or by employing a doubled-overstrip of upholstery material or an extrusion. A unique shellconstruction has been provided involving mating perimeter and centershells, wherein the center shell covers an aperture in the perimetershell.

The invention should not be deemed limited to the specific embodimentsshown in the drawings. For example, although an armchair has been shown,the invention is eminently suitable for an armless chair and other itemsof furniture. Many other changes may be made. Accordingly, the inventionshould be taken to be defined by the following claims:

lclaim:

l. The method of making an article of furniture formed from an integralshell having the contour of the article of furniture, wherein theimprovement comprises severing the integral shell to provide a separateperimeter shell having an aperture therein and a center shell producedby the severing of the integral shell, the center shell matingwith theperimeter shell in the completed article of furniture so as to close offthe aperture in the perimeter shell.

2. The method of making an article of furniture as defined in claim I,wherein the perimeter and center shells are separately upholstered, withconnections of upholstery toeach shell being located along an edgeportion of the shell, and thereafter joining the two shells along theedge portions thereof so as to conceal the upholstery connectionsbetween the joined edge portions.

3. The method of making an article of furniture as defined in claim 1,wherein the integral shell is formed with a portion thereof that formsan angle with the adjacent parts of the integral shell, the integralshell being severed in said portion to form the perimeter and centershells.

4. The method of making an article of furniture, comprising forming aperimeter shell having an aperture through the surface thereof, forminga center shell adapted to mate with the perimeter shell so as to closeoff the aperture through the surface of the perimeter shell, and joiningthe two shells together to complete the closing of the aperture.

5. The method of making an article of furniture as defined in claim 4,wherein the perimeter and center shells are separately upholstered, withconnections of upholstery to each shell being located along an edgeportion of the shell, the two shells being joined along the edgeportions thereof so as to conceal the upholstery connections between thejoined edge portions.

respect to the adjacent portion of the respective shell, the flanges soformed being caused to abut each other in the joining together of theshells.

1. The method of making an article of furniture formed from an integralshell having the contour of the article of furniture, wherein theimprovement comprises severing the integral shell to provide a separateperimeter shell having an aperture therein and a center shell producedby the severing of the integral shell, the center shell mating with theperimeter shell in the completed article of furniture so as to close offthe aperture in the perimeter shell.
 2. The method of making an articleof furniture as defined in claim 1, wherein the perimeter and centershells are separately upholstered, with connections of upholstery toeach shell being located along an edge portion of the shell, andthereafter joining the two shells along the edge portions thereof so asto conceal the upholstery connections between the joined edge portions.3. The method of making an article of furniture as defined in claim 1,wherein the integral shell is formed with a portion thereof that formsan angle with the adjacent parts of the integral shell, the integralshell being severed in said portion to form the perimeter and centershells.
 4. The method of making an article of furniture, comprisingforming a perimeter shell having an aperture through the surfacethereof, forming a center shell adapted to mate with the perimeter shellso as to close off the aperture through the surface of the perimetershell, and joining the two shells together to complete the closing ofthe aperture.
 5. The method of making an article of furniture as definedin claim 4, wherein the perimeter and center shells are separatelyupholstered, with connections of upholstery to each shell being locatedalong an edge portion of the shell, the two shells being joined alongthe edge portions thereof so as to conceal the upholstery connectionsbetween the joined edge portions.
 6. The method of making an article offurniture as defined in claim 4, including forming the inner peripheraledge portion of the perimeter shell and the outer peripheral edgeportion of the center shell each with a flange extending at an aNglewith respect to the adjacent portion of the respective shell, theflanges so formed being caused to abut each other in the joiningtogether of the shells.